Lani Guinier, the first black woman to be a tenured professor at Harvard University Law School, will speak Tuesday at Eastern Connecticut State University in Willimantic. Lanier gained public attention in 1993, when President Clinton nominated her to be the first black woman to head the civil rights division of the Department of Justice and then, after criticism of her views by conservatives, withdrew her name without a confirmation hearing. A graduate of Radcliffe College and Yale University Law School, Guinier taught at the University of Pennsylvania before going to Harvard, where she teaches courses on professional responsibility for public lawyers, law and the political process and critical perspectives on race, gender, class and social change.

Lani Guinier, Harvard University professor of law and a nominee by President Clinton to head the civil rights division of the Department of Justice, will lecture at Central Connecticut State University later this month. Guinier will speak on "Legitimacy of Affirmative Action in Higher Education." The lecture will be held April 28 at 5 p.m. in Alumni Hall, inside the student center. Guinier is the first black female tenured professor in Harvard Law School's history. In 1993, Clinton nominated her for the Justice post.

Lani Guinier, Harvard University professor of law and a nominee by President Clinton to head the civil rights division of the Department of Justice, will lecture at Central Connecticut State University later this month. Guinier will speak on "Legitimacy of Affirmative Action in Higher Education." The lecture will be held April 28 at 5 p.m. in Alumni Hall, inside the student center. Guinier is the first black female tenured professor in Harvard Law School's history. In 1993, Clinton nominated her for the Justice post.

With the U.S. Supreme Court considering a landmark affirmative action case involving the University of Michigan, Harvard Law School Professor Lani Guinier couldn't have had a more timely jumping off point Tuesday night as she shared her views on affirmative action with an audience at Eastern Connecticut State University. Using the metaphor of a canary in a mine, Guinier said too often society looks at affirmative action as the canary's problem, rather than a bigger, more pervasive problem of the atmosphere the canary is in. "The mistake we tend to make is we think it is only about race," Guinier said.

This fall the University of Connecticut will host dozens of lectures, exhibits and symposia focused on human rights, including a lecture by Lani Guinier, whose nomination for assistant attorney general was withdrawn by President Clinton after critics branded her a "quota queen." UConn Chancellor John D. Petersen designated this fall the Human Rights Semester to inform students and the public about the importance of human rights. The semester will kick off Sept. 20 with a lecture on human rights and the culture wars by Rhoda Howard-Hassman, a Gladstein visiting professor and sociology professor at McMaster University in Canada.

By DON NOEL Don Noel is The Courant's political columnist. ------, October 14, 1994

In 1921, West Hartford elected its Town Council by a form of proportional representation. Voters sort of gave a grade to each candidate they voted for. Anyone with an absolute majority of No. 1 votes was automatically elected. The remaining seats were filled by weighting each runner-up's votes. Designed to create a governing body acceptable to the largest number of voters, the change was part of a national reform movement in which West Hartford also pioneered town manager government.

George Bush went to Kennebunkport for his vacations. Ronald Reagan retreated to his California ranch. Jimmy Carter put Plains, Ga., on the map. Presidents, from Franklin D. Roosevelt to Gerald R. Ford, had their favorite getaway spots. Bill Clinton is the first homeless president. He is still searching for the right place, even for a vacation. Earlier this year, he tried spending a few days at his Hollywood friends' house in Los Angeles, but that backfired politically. This week, the Clintons are on Martha's Vineyard, the small Massachusetts island dotted with homes of literati and glitterati.

By JEFF RIVERS; Courant Columnist Jeff Rivers is an associate editor at The Courant., March 13, 1997

"Nations are not truly great solely because the individuals composing them are numerous, free, and active; but they are great when these numbers, this freedom, and this activity are employed in the service of an ideal higher than that of an ordinary man, taken by himself." -- Matthew Arnold, English essayist and literary critic, 1822-88. Bill Clinton is a survivor and a winner. He gets what he wants. Never forget that. Clinton wanted to be president. He's been elected to two terms, each time against the early odds.

HARTFORD City Shooting Victim In Critical Condition A city man shot in a housing complex was in critical condition at Hartford Hospital Tuesday night, police said. Jose Rivera, 25, was shot in the head and chest about 1:15 p.m. Tuesday at the Wethersford Condominium complex, 755 Wethersfield Ave., police said. Witnesses could not provide any information about who may have shot Rivera, police said. Anyone with information is asked to call the major crimes division at 860-527-7300, Ext. 5253, or the department's crime tip line at 860-525-4867.

Call it the Remaking of the President, 1993. Bill Clinton has been busy the last few days desperately trying to fashion a new image for his presidency. Suddenly out of vogue are big tax-and-spending proposals and a left-of-center social agenda. Back in favor are the policies Clinton successfully used last year to craft the image of a new, moderate Democrat. This remake is necessary because all the polls show his job-approval ratings have tumbled to unprecedented depths. But the shift has to be handled very skillfully or it could lead to the unmaking of this young presidency.

Lani Guinier, the first black woman to be a tenured professor at Harvard University Law School, will speak Tuesday at Eastern Connecticut State University in Willimantic. Lanier gained public attention in 1993, when President Clinton nominated her to be the first black woman to head the civil rights division of the Department of Justice and then, after criticism of her views by conservatives, withdrew her name without a confirmation hearing. A graduate of Radcliffe College and Yale University Law School, Guinier taught at the University of Pennsylvania before going to Harvard, where she teaches courses on professional responsibility for public lawyers, law and the political process and critical perspectives on race, gender, class and social change.

HARTFORD City Shooting Victim In Critical Condition A city man shot in a housing complex was in critical condition at Hartford Hospital Tuesday night, police said. Jose Rivera, 25, was shot in the head and chest about 1:15 p.m. Tuesday at the Wethersford Condominium complex, 755 Wethersfield Ave., police said. Witnesses could not provide any information about who may have shot Rivera, police said. Anyone with information is asked to call the major crimes division at 860-527-7300, Ext. 5253, or the department's crime tip line at 860-525-4867.

A Christmas or two from now, there will be PC software that enables you to make a Ken Burns documentary ... about you. You'll type in your name and sex. Then click on a narrator option: -- Mike Wallace -- David Hartman -- Lani Guinier -- Bill Moyers -- Gore Vidal I don't know. It seems like Gore Vidal would cost extra, somehow. Maybe there's an internal budget, like in RollerCoaster Tycoon. If you hire Gore as narrator, you can't afford Ry Cooder as music director.

In a development given heightened significance by the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, the University of Connecticut has introduced a human rights minor and designated this fall as a human rights semester to prepare students for an increasingly connected world. "I think that many universities around the country are realizing they need to prepare students for a changing world, an increasingly globalized economy. Students will be leaving here and facing a lot of these issues as they go to work at government agencies and corporations," said Kenneth Neubeck, associate professor of sociology and director of the human rights minor.

Wendy Wasserstein feels a special attachment to the main character in her play "An American Daughter." Both have been put through the celebrity wringer. Her character -- smart, funny and eminently qualified physician Lyssa Dent Hughes -- is tested by political and media fire when the president nominates her to be U.S. surgeon general and a long-ago-forgotten jury summons threatens to derail her appointment. Wasserstein received her battle scars when her first "serious" play received less-than- glowing notices two years ago in a Broadway production starring Kate Nelligan and directed by longtime collaborator Dan Sullivan.

By JEFF RIVERS; Courant Columnist Jeff Rivers is an associate editor at The Courant., March 13, 1997

"Nations are not truly great solely because the individuals composing them are numerous, free, and active; but they are great when these numbers, this freedom, and this activity are employed in the service of an ideal higher than that of an ordinary man, taken by himself." -- Matthew Arnold, English essayist and literary critic, 1822-88. Bill Clinton is a survivor and a winner. He gets what he wants. Never forget that. Clinton wanted to be president. He's been elected to two terms, each time against the early odds.